I. INTRODUCTION

1. In the Declaration adopted at the World Food Summit:
five years later (WFS:fyl) in June 2002, the Heads of State and
Government reaffirmed "the right of everyone to have access to safe and
nutritious food" and invited −

"…the FAO Council to establish at its One
Hundred and Twenty-third session an Intergovernmental Working Group, with the
participation of stakeholders, in the context of the WFS follow-up, to
elaborate, in a period of two years, a set of voluntary guidelines to support
Member States' efforts to achieve the progressive realization of the right to
adequate food in the context of national food security; we ask the FAO, in
close collaboration with relevant treaty bodies, agencies and programmes of
the UN system, to assist the Intergovernmental Working Group, which shall
report on its work to the Committee on World Food Security." (operative
paragraph 10)

2. The Council, during its 123rd Session from 28
October to 2 November 2002 accordingly established the Intergovernmental Working
Group for the Elaboration of a Set of Voluntary Guidelines to Support the
Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National
Food Security (IGWG) as a subsidiary body of the Committee on World Food
Security (CFS).

3. In accordance with its mandate the IGWG developed and
adopted the Voluntary Guidelines. The Chairman of the IGWG, Ambassador Mohammad
Saeid Noori-Naeeni (Iran), presented the Voluntary Guidelines to the CFS at its
Thirtieth Session for endorsement and transmission to Council. The CFS endorsed
the Voluntary Guidelines as submitted and decided to transmit them to Council
for final adoption. Because of the limited time during CFS to prepare a final
report, the Chair of the IGWG was requested to subsequently submit this report
which reflects the entire IGWG process for the benefit of Council.

II. THE NEGOTIATION PROCESS: ELABORATION OF THE GUIDELINES

4. The IGWG held its First Session from 26 to 28 March 2003, its Second Session
from 27 to 29 October 2003, its Third Session from 5 to 10 July 2004 and its
Fourth Session on 23 September 2004. In addition, it held an Open-Ended Working
Group Session from 2 to 5 February 2004.

5. The development of the Guidelines proceeded as follows:

6. At the First Session of the IGWG a Synthesis Report was discussed that the
Secretariat had prepared on the basis of submissions by Members and stakeholders
as to the form, structure and content of the Voluntary Guidelines. This
Synthesis Report was finalized subsequent to the First Session and served as a
basis for a zero draft of the Voluntary Guidelines prepared by the Secretariat.

7. The IGWG tasked its Bureau to produce a first draft of the Voluntary
Guidelines, using the Secretariat’s version as a point of departure. The Bureau
did this during two meetings from 9 to 11 July and from 15 to19 September 2003.

8. The first draft of the Voluntary Guidelines was considered at the Second
Session of the IGWG (27-29 October 2003) and commented on in general terms
having been accepted as a basis for the elaboration of Voluntary Guidelines. The
Secretariat prepared a Summary Report (non-paper) of issues raised during this
Session.

9. During an inter-sessional meeting within the framework of an Open-Ended
Working Group (OEWG, 2-5 February 2004), proposals for changes or additions to
the text of the first draft of the Voluntary Guidelines were recorded in a
“Compilation” including some 440 proposals. The OEWG delegated authority to the
Bureau to consolidate these proposals without changing their meaning.

10. The Bureau developed a second draft of the Voluntary Guidelines (26-29 April
2004), which included 188 proposals.

11. This second draft of the Voluntary Guidelines provided the basis for the
first true negotiations of the Voluntary Guidelines which took place during the
Third Session of the IGWG (5–10 July 2004). Maximum efforts were made to
facilitate and conclude the negotiations. Regions were invited to consolidate
their positions. Three Working Groups and Friends of the Chair groups were
established to deal with specific issues outside plenary. Agreement was reached
on the majority of the Voluntary Guidelines. It was decided to continue
negotiations on the unresolved issues within a Friends of the Chair group during
the Thirtieth Session of the CFS with a view to adopting them at a final session
of the IGWG.

12. The Friends of the Chair group met from 20 to 22 of September 2004 and
agreed on all outstanding aspects as to the structure and content of the
Voluntary Guidelines. It decided that the Chair of the IGWG would transmit the
document resulting from the negotiations to a Fourth Session of the IGWG for
formal adoption.

13. A Fourth Session of the IGWG was held on 23 September 2004 by temporarily
converting its parent body, the CFS, into the IGWG. During this Session the IGWG
completed its work.

III. THE LEARNING PROCESS: SUPPORTING EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES

14. From the outset it had been evident that the concept and likely content of
voluntary guidelines to support the realization of the right to adequate food
was new to most involved with the IGWG. Time thus had to be spent developing a
common understanding of such guidelines and their possible implications, before
negotiations could commence.

15. This learning process was assisted by eight information papers produced by
the Secretariat to examine the right to adequate food from different
perspectives and to clarify specific issues covered in the draft Voluntary
Guidelines. In addition, case studies were conducted in five countries with
experience in implementing the right to food (Brazil, Canada, India, South
Africa and Uganda). The purpose of this exercise was to gather information about
practical in-country experience with different policies, programmes and
mechanisms including legal frameworks, institutions and processes conducive to
realising the right to adequate food. A synthesis of the outcome of these case
studies was provided by the Secretariat. IGWG Members and the Secretariat
participated also in some eight international events, in which the right to food
was dealt with, which helped to deepen understanding of the topic.

IV. PARTICIPATION AND CONTRIBUTIONS

16. Approximately 200 delegates from some 90 Members have been involved at IGWG
meetings. Regional chairs played an active role in consolidating regional
positions to facilitate negotiations. The Bureau made a significant contribution
to shaping the draft Voluntary Guidelines and consolidating the many proposals
received. Its members were also closely involved in steering inter-sessional
activities in close collaboration with the Secretariat.

17. The IGWG conducted its general debate in a way that enabled both state and
non-state participants to contribute equally to a constructive exchange of
views. Representatives of UN bodies, in particular, the UN High Commissioner for
Human Rights and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the UN
Special Rapporteur for the Right to Food, the World Food Programme and the
International Fund for Agricultural Development helped to elucidate difficult
issues.

18. Civil Society contributed significantly to the IGWG in a constructive and
effective manner, which was highly appreciated by Member Governments.

19. Negotiations of the draft Voluntary Guidelines were characterized and
facilitated by a highly positive and cooperative spirit on the part of all
concerned. Members and stakeholders interacted in a constructive manner, which
was, in turn, facilitated by a spirit of purpose, patience, flexibility,
constructive realism and creativity.

20. The Chair thanked all concerned for their constructiveness and dedication,
in particular Members of the Bureau and of the Secretariat. The IGWG, in turn,
expressed its appreciation of the outstanding leadership of the Chair and of the
support of the Secretariat.

21. It also acknowledged the generous extra-budgetary funding provided by
Germany, Norway, Switzerland and Belgium which enabled the work of the IGWG, and
associated activities such as the preparation of information papers and the case
studies.

V. OUTCOME OF THE PROCESS

22. At its Fourth Session the IGWG adopted the Voluntary Guidelines (Annex 1) by
acclamation and submitted them to the CFS for endorsement and transmission to
Council. One member, while joining the adoption of the Voluntary Guidelines by
consensus, submitted a statement to be included in the records of the meeting
(Annex 2).

23. Various Regional Groups and Members emphasized the importance of the
Voluntary Guidelines as an additional instrument to combat hunger and poverty,
and pointed out the need for Members and the Secretariat to now focus on their
implementation.

VI. REPORT

24. The present report is presented as the final report of the Chair of the
IGWG.

ANNEX 1

VOLUNTARY GUIDELINES TO SUPPORT THE PROGRESSIVE REALIZATION OF THE RIGHT
TO ADEQUATE FOOD IN THE CONTEXT OF NATIONAL FOOD SECURITY

Text approved during IGWG IV (23 September 2004)

Section I: Preface and Introduction

Preface

1. The eradication of hunger is clearly reflected in the target set at the
World Food Summit to reduce the number of undernourished people to half their
present level no later than 2015 and as agreed by the Millennium Summit to
“halve the proportion of people who suffer from hunger” by the same year.

2. In the Rome Declaration on World Food Security, Heads of State and Government
“reaffirm[ed] the right of everyone to have access to safe and nutritious food,
consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone
to be free from hunger.” Objective 7.4 of the World Food Summit Plan of Action
established the task: “to clarify the content of the right to adequate food and
the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger, as stated in the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and other
relevant international and regional instruments, and to give particular
attention to implementation and full and progressive realization of this right
as a means of achieving food security for all.”

3. The Plan of Action “invite[d] the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in
consultation with relevant treaty bodies, and in collaboration with relevant
specialized agencies and programmes of the UN system and appropriate
intergovernmental mechanisms, to better define the rights related to food in
Article 11 of the Covenant and to propose ways to implement and realize these
rights as a means of achieving the commitments and objectives of the World Food
Summit, taking into account the possibility of formulating voluntary guidelines
for food security for all.”

4. In response to the invitation by the World Food Summit, and following several
international consultations, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights adopted General Comment 12, which provided its experts’ views on the
progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

5. In Paragraph 10 of the Declaration adopted at the 2002 World Food Summit:
five years later, Heads of State and Government invited the Council of the
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to establish at its
123rd session an Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG), in the context of the
World Food Summit follow-up, with the following mandate: “to elaborate, with the
participation of stakeholders, in a period of two years, a set of voluntary
guidelines to support Member Nations’ efforts to achieve the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food
security”.

6. The objective of these Voluntary Guidelines is to provide practical guidance
to States in their implementation of the progressive realization of the right to
adequate food in the context of national food security, in order to achieve the
goals of the Plan of Action of the World Food Summit. Relevant stakeholders
could also benefit from such guidance.

7. The Voluntary Guidelines take into account a wide range of important
considerations and principles, including equality and non-discrimination,
participation and inclusion, accountability and rule of law, and the principle
that all human rights are universal, indivisible, inter-related and
interdependent. Food should not be used as a tool for political and economic
pressure.

8. In developing these Voluntary Guidelines, the IGWG has benefited from the
active participation of international organizations, non-governmental
organizations and representatives of civil society. The implementation of these
Guidelines, which is primarily the responsibility of States, should benefit from
the contribution of all members of civil society at large, including NGOs and
the private sector.

9. These Voluntary Guidelines are a human rights-based practical tool addressed
to all States. They do not establish legally binding obligations for States or
international organizations, nor is any provision in them to be interpreted as
amending, modifying or otherwise impairing rights and obligations under national
and international law. States are encouraged to apply these Voluntary Guidelines
in developing their strategies, policies, programmes and activities, and should
do so without discrimination of any kind, such as to race, colour, sex,
language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin,
property, birth or other status.

Introduction

BASIC INSTRUMENTS

10. These Voluntary Guidelines have taken into account
relevant international instruments,1
in particular those instruments in which the progressive realization of the
right of everyone to an adequate standard of living, including adequate food, is
enshrined.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 25:

1. Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and
well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and
medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the
event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of
livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Article 11:

1. The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone
to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate
food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living
conditions. The States Parties will take appropriate steps to ensure the
realization of this right, recognizing to this effect the essential importance
of international cooperation based on free consent.

2. The States Parties to the present Covenant, recognizing
the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger, shall take,
individually and through international cooperation, the measures, including
specific programmes, which are needed:
(a) to improve methods of production, conservation and
distribution of food by making full use of technical and scientific knowledge,
by disseminating knowledge of the principles of nutrition and by developing or
reforming agrarian systems in such a way as to achieve the most efficient
development and utilization of natural resources;
(b) taking into account the problems of both food-importing
and food-exporting countries, to ensure an equitable distribution of world food
supplies in relation to need.

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights, Article 2:

1. Each State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to
take steps, individually and through international assistance and cooperation,
especially economic and technical, to the maximum of its available resources,
with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of the rights
recognized in the present Covenant by all appropriate means, including
particularly the adoption of legislative measures.

2. The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to
guarantee that the rights enunciated in the present Covenant will be exercised
without discrimination of any kind as to race, colour, sex, language, religion,
political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other
status.

11. Among others, Articles 55 and 56 of the Charter of the United Nations
are relevant to these Voluntary Guidelines.

UN Charter, Article 55

With a view to the creation of conditions of
stability and well-being which are necessary for peaceful and friendly
relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights
and self-determination of peoples, the United Nations shall promote:a. higher standards of living, full employment,
and conditions of economic and social progress and development;b. solutions of international economic, social,
health, and related problems; and international cultural and educational
co-operation; andc. universal respect for, and observance of,
human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to
race, sex, language, or religion.

UN Charter, Article 56

All Members pledge themselves to take joint and
separate action in co-operation with the Organization for the achievement of
the purposes set forth in Article 55.

12. Other international instruments, including the Convention of the Rights
of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination Against Women, the four Geneva Conventions and their two
Additional Protocols also contain provisions relevant to these Voluntary
Guidelines.

13. These Voluntary Guidelines have taken into account the commitments
contained in the Millennium Declaration, including the development goals, as
well as the outcomes and commitments of the major UN conferences and summits in
the economic, social and related fields.

14. The IGWG has also taken into account several Resolutions from the United
Nations General Assembly and Commission on Human Rights and the General Comments
adopted by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

THE RIGHT TO ADEQUATE FOOD AND
THE ACHIEVEMENT OF FOOD SECURITY

15. Food security exists when all people, at all times, have
physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet
their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. The
four pillars of food security are availability, stability of supply, access and
utilization.

16. The progressive realization of the right to adequate food
requires States to fulfil their relevant human rights obligations under
international law. These Voluntary Guidelines aim to guarantee the availability
of food in quantity and quality sufficient to satisfy the dietary needs of
individuals; physical and economic accessibility for everyone, including
vulnerable groups, to adequate food, free from unsafe substances and acceptable
within a given culture; or the means of its procurement.

17. States have obligations under relevant international
instruments relevant to the progressive realization of the right to adequate
food. Notably, States Parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social
and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) have the obligation to respect, promote and protect
and to take appropriate steps to achieve progressively the full realization of
the right to adequate food. States Parties should respect existing access to
adequate food by not taking any measures that result in preventing such access,
and should protect the right of everyone to adequate food by taking steps so
that enterprises and individuals do not deprive individuals of their access to
adequate food. States Parties should promote policies intended to contribute to
the progressive realization of people’s right to adequate food by proactively
engaging in activities intended to strengthen people’s access to and utilization
of resources and means to ensure their livelihood, including food security.
States Parties should, to the extent that resources permit, establish and
maintain safety nets or other assistance to protect those who are unable to
provide for themselves.

18. States that are not Parties to the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) are invited to consider
ratifying the ICESCR.

19. At the national level, a human rights-based approach to
food security emphasizes universal, inter-dependent, indivisible and
inter-related human rights, the obligations of States and the roles of relevant
stakeholders. It emphasizes the achievement of food security as an outcome of
the realization of existing rights and includes certain key principles: the need
to enable individuals to realize the right to take part in the conduct of public
affairs, the right to freedom of expression and the right to seek, receive and
impart information, including in relation to decision making about policies on
realizing the right to adequate food. Such an approach should take into account
the need for emphasis on poor and vulnerable people who are often excluded from
the processes that determine policies to promote food security and the need for
inclusive societies free from discrimination by the State in meeting their
obligations to promote and respect human rights. In this approach, people hold
their governments accountable and are participants in the process of human
development, rather than being passive recipients. A human rights-based approach
requires not only addressing the final outcome of abolishing hunger, but also
proposing ways and tools by which that goal is achieved. Application of human
rights principles is integral to the process.

Section II: Enabling Environment,
Assistance and Accountability

GUIDELINE 1:
DEMOCRACY, GOOD GOVERNANCE, HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE RULE OF LAW

1.1 States should promote and safeguard a free, democratic and just society
in order to provide a peaceful, stable and enabling economic, social, political
and cultural environment in which individuals can feed themselves and their
families in freedom and dignity.

1.2 States should promote democracy, the rule of law, sustainable development
and good governance, and promote and protect human rights and fundamental
freedoms in order to empower individuals and civil society to make demands on
their governments, devise policies that address their specific needs and ensure
the accountability and transparency of governments and state decision-making
processes in implementing such policies. States should, in particular, promote
freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of information, freedom of the press
and freedom of assembly and association, which enhances the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food
security. Food should not be used as a tool for political and economic pressure.

1.3 States should also promote good governance as an essential factor for
sustained economic growth, sustainable development, poverty and hunger
eradication and for the realization of all human rights including the
progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

1.4 States should ensure, in accordance with their international human rights
obligations, that all individuals, including human rights defenders of the
progressive realization of the right to adequate food, are accorded equal
protection under the law and that due process is guaranteed in all legal
proceedings.

1.5 Where appropriate and consistent with domestic law, States may assist
individuals and groups of individuals to have access to legal assistance to
better assert the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

GUIDELINE 2:
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT POLICIES

2.1 In order to achieve the progressive realization of the right to adequate
food in the context of national food security, States should promote broad-based
economic development that is supportive of their food security policies. States
should establish policy goals and benchmarks based on the food security needs of
their population.

2.2 States should assess, in consultation with key stakeholders, the economic
and social situation, including the degree of food insecurity and its causes,
the nutrition situation and food safety.

2.3 States should promote adequate and stable supplies of safe food through a
combination of domestic production, trade, storage and distribution.

2.4 States should consider adopting a holistic and comprehensive approach to
hunger and poverty reduction. Such an approach entails, inter alia,
direct and immediate measures to ensure access to adequate food as part of a
social safety net; investment in productive activities and projects to improve
the livelihoods of the poor and hungry in a sustainable manner; the development
of appropriate institutions, functioning markets, a conducive legal and
regulatory framework; and access to employment, productive resources and
appropriate services.

2.5 States should pursue inclusive, non-discriminatory and sound economic,
agriculture, fisheries, forestry, land use, and, as appropriate,land
reform policies, all of which will permit farmers, fishers, foresters and other
food producers, particularly women, to earn a fair return from their labour,
capital and management, and encourage conservation and sustainable management of
natural resources, including in marginal areas.

2.6 Where poverty and hunger are predominantly rural, States should focus on
sustainable agricultural and rural development through measures to improve
access to land, water, appropriate and affordable technologies, productive and
financial resources, enhance the productivity of poor rural communities, promote
the participation of the poor in economic policy decisions, share the benefits
of productivity gains, conserve and protect natural resources, and invest in
rural infrastructure, education and research. In particular, States should adopt
policies that create conditions that encourage stable employment, especially in
rural areas, including off-farm jobs.

2.7 In response to the growing problem of urban hunger and poverty, States
should promote investments aimed at enhancing the livelihoods of the urban poor.

GUIDELINE 3:
STRATEGIES

3.1 States, as appropriate and in consultation with relevant stakeholders and
pursuant to their national laws, should consider adopting a national
human-rights based strategy for the progressive realization of the right to
adequate food in the context of national food security as part of an overarching
national development strategy, including poverty reduction strategies, where
they exist.

3.2 The elaboration of these strategies should begin with a careful
assessment of existing national legislation, policy and administrative measures,
current programmes, systematic identification of existing constraints and
availability of existing resources. States should formulate the measures
necessary to remedy any weakness, and propose an agenda for change and the means
for its implementation and evaluation.

3.3 These strategies could include objectives, targets, benchmarks and time
frames; and actions to formulate policies, identify and mobilize resources,
define institutional mechanisms, allocate responsibilities, coordinate the
activities of different actors, and provide for monitoring mechanisms. As
appropriate, such strategies could address all aspects of the food system,
including the production, processing, distribution, marketing and consumption of
safe food. It could also address access to resources and to markets as well as
parallel measures in other fields. These strategies should, in particular,
address the needs of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, as well as special
situations such as natural disasters and emergencies.

3.4 Where necessary, States should consider adopting and, as appropriate,
reviewing a national poverty reduction strategy that specifically addresses
access to adequate food.

3.5 States, individually or in cooperation with relevant international
organizations, should consider integrating into their poverty reduction strategy
a human rights perspective based on the principle of non-discrimination. In
raising the standard of living of those below the poverty line, due regardshould be given to the need to ensure equality in practice to those who are
traditionally disadvantaged and between women and men.

3.6 In their poverty reduction strategies, States should also give priority
to providing basic services for the poorest, and investing in human resources by
ensuring access to primary education for all, basic health care, capacity
building in good practices, clean drinking water, adequate sanitation and
justice and by supporting programmes in basic literacy, numeracy and good
hygiene practices.

3.7 States are encouraged, inter alia and in a sustainable manner, to
increase productivity and to revitalize the agricultural sector including
livestock, forestry and fisheries through special policies and strategies
targeted at small-scale and traditional fishers, and farmers in rural areas, and
the creation of enabling conditions for private sector participation, with
emphasis on human capacity development and the removal of constraints to
agricultural production, marketing and distribution.

3.8 In developing these strategies, States are encouraged to consult with
civil society organizations and other key stakeholders at national and regional
levels, including small-scale and traditional farmers, private sector, women,
and youth associations, with the aim of promoting their active participation in
all aspects of agricultural and food production strategies.

3.9 These strategies should be transparent, inclusive and comprehensive, cut
across national policies, programmes and projects, take into account the special
needs of girls and women, combine short-term and long-term objectives, and be
prepared and implemented in a participatory and accountable manner.

3.10 States should support, including through regional cooperation, the
implementation of national strategies for development, in particular for
the reduction of poverty and hunger as well as for the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food.

GUIDELINE 4:
MARKET SYSTEMS

4.1 States should, in accordance with their national law and priorities,as well as their international commitments, improve the functioning of their
markets, in particular their agricultural and food markets, in order to promote
both economic growth and sustainable development, inter alia, by
mobilizing domestic savings, both public and private, by developing appropriate
credit policies, by generating sustainable adequate levels of national
productive investment through credits in concessional terms and by increasing
human capacity.

4.2 States should put legislation, policies, procedures and regulatory and
other institutions in place to ensure non-discriminatory access to markets andto prevent uncompetitive practices in markets.

4.3 States should encourage the development of corporate social
responsibility and the commitment of all market players and civil society
towards the progressive realization of the right of individuals to adequate food
in the context of national food security.

4.4 States should provide adequate protection to consumers against fraudulent
market practices, misinformation and unsafe food. The measures toward this
objective should not constitute unjustified barriers to international trade and
should be in conformity with the WTO agreements.

4.5 States should, as appropriate, promote the development of small-scale
local and regional markets and border trade to reduce poverty and increase food
security, particularly in poor rural and urban areas.

4.6 States may wish to adopt measures to ensure that the widest number of
individuals and communities, especially disadvantaged groups, can benefit from
opportunities created by competitive agricultural trade.

4.7 States should strive to ensure that food, agricultural trade and overall
trade policies are conducive to fostering food security for all through a
non-discriminatory and market-oriented local, regional, national and
world trade system.

4.8 States should endeavour to establish well functioning internal marketing,
storage, transportation, communication and distribution systems, inter alia,
to facilitate diversified trade and better links within and between domestic,
regional and world markets, as well as to take advantage of new market
opportunities.

4.9 States will take into account that markets do not automatically result in
everybody achieving a sufficient income at all times to meet basic needs, and
should therefore seek to provide adequate social safety nets and, where
appropriate, the assistance of the international community for this purpose.

4.10 States should take into account the shortcomings of market mechanisms in
protecting the environment and public goods.

GUIDELINE 5:
INSTITUTIONS

5.1 States, where appropriate, should assess the mandate and performance of
relevant public institutions and, where necessary, establish, reform or improve
their organization and structure to contribute to the progressive realization of
the right to adequate food in the context of national food security.

5.2 To this end, States may wish to ensure the coordinated efforts of
relevant government ministries, agencies and offices. They could establish
national intersectoral coordination mechanisms to ensure the concerted
implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies, plans and programmes.
States are encouraged to involve relevant communities in all aspects of planning
and execution of activities in these areas.

5.3 States may also wish to entrust a specific institution with overall
responsibility for overseeing and coordinating the application of these
guidelines, bearing in mind the Declaration and Programme of Action of the 1993
Vienna World Conference on Human Rights and taking due account of existing
agriculture conventions and protocols. In order to ensure transparency and
accountability, the functions and tasks of this institution would need to be
clearly defined, regularly reviewed and provision made for adequate monitoring
mechanisms.

5.4 States should ensure that relevant institutions provide for full and
transparent participation of the private sector and of civil society, in
particular representatives of the groups most affected by food insecurity.

5.5 States should take measures, where and if necessary, to develop,
strengthen, implement and maintain effective anticorruption legislation and
policies, including in the food sector and in the management of emergency food
aid.

GUIDELINE 6:
STAKEHOLDERS

6.1 Recognizing the primary responsibility of States for the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food, States are encouraged to apply a
multi-stakeholder approach to national food security to identify the roles of
and involve all relevant stakeholders, encompassing civil society and the
private sector, drawing together their know-how with a view to facilitating the
efficient use of resources.

GUIDELINE 7:
LEGAL FRAMEWORK

7.1 States are invited to consider, in accordance with their domestic legal
and policy frameworks, whether to include provisions in their domestic law,
possibly including constitutional or legislative review that facilitates the
progressive realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national
food security.

7.2 States are invited to consider, in accordance with their domestic legal
and policy frameworks, whether to include provisions in their domestic law,
which may include their constitutions, bills of rights or legislation, to
directly implement the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.
Administrative, quasi-judicial and judicial mechanisms to provide adequate,
effective and prompt remedies accessible, in particular, to members of
vulnerable groups may be envisaged.

7.3 States that have established a right to adequate food under their legal
system should inform the general public of all available rights and remedies to
which they are entitled.

7.4 States should consider strengthening their domestic law and policies to
accord access by women heads of households to poverty reduction and nutrition
security programmes and projects.

GUIDELINE 8:
ACCESS TO RESOURCES AND ASSETS

8.1 States should facilitate sustainable, non-discriminatory and secure
access and utilization of resources consistent with their national law and with
international law and protect the assets that are important for people’s
livelihoods. States should respect and protect the rights of individuals with
respect to resources such as land, water, forests, fisheries and livestock
without any discrimination. Where necessary and appropriate, States should carry
out land reforms and other policy reforms consistent with their human rights
obligations and in accordance with the rule of law in order to secure efficient
and equitable access to land and to strengthen pro-poor growth. Special
attention may be given to groups such as pastoralists and indigenous people and
their relation to natural resources.

8.2 States should take steps so that members of vulnerable groups can have
access to opportunities and economic resources in order to participate fully and
equally in the economy.

8.3 States should pay particular attention to the specific access problems of
women and of vulnerable, marginalized and traditionally disadvantaged groups,
including all persons affected by HIV/AIDS. States should take measures to
protect all people affected by HIV/AIDS from losing their access to resources
and assets.

8.4 States should promote agricultural research and development, in
particular to promote basic food production with its positive effects on basic
incomes and its benefits to small and women farmers, as well as poor consumers.

8.5 States should, within the framework of relevant international agreements,
including those on intellectual property, promote access by medium and
small-scale farmers to research results enhancing food security.

8.6 States should promote women’s full and equal participation in the economy
and, for this purpose, introduce, where it does not exist, and implement
gender-sensitive legislation providing women with the right to inherit and
possess land and other property. States should also provide women with secure
and equal access to, control over, and benefits from productive resources,
including credit, land, water and appropriate technologies.

8.7 States should design and implement programmes that include different
mechanisms of access and appropriate use of agricultural land directed to the
poorest populations.

Guideline 8a: Labour

8.8 States should take measures to encourage sustainable development in order
to provide opportunities for work that provides remuneration allowing for an
adequate standard of living for rural and urban wage earners and their families,
and to promote and protect self-employment. For States that have ratified the
relevant instruments, working conditions should be consistent with the
obligations they have assumed under the International Covenant on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, relevant ILO Conventions and other treaties
including human rights conventions.

8.9 In order to improve access to the labour market, States should enhance
human capital through education programmes, adult literacy and additional
training programmes, as required, regardless of race, colour, gender, language,
religion, political opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other
status.

Guideline 8b: Land

8.10 States should take measures to promote and protect the security of land
tenure, especially with respect to women, poor and disadvantaged segments of
society, through legislation that protects the full and equal right to own land
and other property, including the right to inherit. As appropriate, States
should consider establishing legal and other policy mechanisms, consistent with
their international human rights obligations and in accordance with the rule of
law, that advance land reform to enhance access for the poor and women. Such
mechanisms should also promote conservation and sustainable use of land. Special
consideration should be given to the situation of indigenous communities.

Guideline 8c: Water

8.11 Bearing in mind that access to water in sufficient quantity and quality
for all is fundamental for life and health, States should strive to improve
access to, and promote sustainable use of, water resources and their allocation
among users giving due regard to efficiency and the satisfaction of basic human
needs in an equitable manner and that balances the requirement of preserving or
restoring the functioning of ecosystems with domestic, industrial and
agricultural needs, including safeguarding drinking water quality.

Guideline 8d: Genetic Resources
for Food and Agriculture

8.12 States, taking into account the importance of
biodiversity, and consistent with their obligations under relevant international
agreements, should consider specific national policies, legal instruments and
supporting mechanisms to prevent the erosion of and ensure the conservation and
sustainable use of genetic resources for food and agriculture, including, as
appropriate, for the protection of relevant traditional knowledge and equitable
participation in sharing benefits arising from the use of these resources, and
by encouraging, as appropriate, the participation of local and indigenous
communities and farmers in making national decisions on matters related to the
conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources for food and agriculture.

Guideline 8e: Sustainability

8.13 States should consider specific national policies, legal instruments and
supporting mechanisms to protect ecological sustainability and the carrying
capacity of ecosystems to ensure the possibility for increased, sustainable food
production for present and future generations, prevent water pollution, protect
the fertility of the soil, and promote the sustainable management of fisheries
and forestry.

Guideline 8f: Services

8.14 States should create an enabling environment and strategies to
facilitate and support the development of private and public sector initiatives
to promote appropriate tools, technologies and mechanization in the provision of
relevant services, including research, extension, marketing, rural finance and
microcredit, to enable more efficient food production by all farmers, in
particular poor farmers, and to address local constraints such as shortage of
land, water and farm power.

GUIDELINE 9:
FOOD SAFETY AND CONSUMER PROTECTION

9.1 States should take measures to ensure that all food, whether locally
produced or imported, freely available or sold on markets, is safe and
consistent with national food safety standards.

9.2 States should establish comprehensive and rational food-control systems
that reduce risk of food borne disease using risk analysis and supervisory
mechanisms to ensure food safety in the entire food chain including animal feed.

9.3 States are encouraged to take action to streamline institutional
procedures for food control and food safety at national level and eliminate gaps
and overlaps in inspection systems and in the legislative and regulatory
framework for food. States are encouraged to adopt scientifically based food
safety standards, including standards for additives, contaminants, residues of
veterinary drugs and pesticides, and microbiological hazards, and to establish
standards for the packaging, labelling and advertising of food. These standards
should take into consideration internationally accepted food standards (Codex
Alimentarius) in accordance with the WTO Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement
(SPS). States should take action to prevent contamination from industrial and
other pollutants in the production, processing, storage, transport,
distribution, handling and sale of food.

9.4 States may wish to establish a national coordinating committee for food
to bring together both governmental and non-governmental actors involved in the
food system and to act as liaison with the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius
Commission. States should consider collaborating with private stakeholders in
the food system, both by assisting them in exercising controls on their own
production and handling practices, and by auditing those controls.

9.5 Where necessary, States should assist farmers and other primary producers
to follow good agricultural practices, food processors to follow good
manufacturing practices, and food handlers to follow good hygiene practices.
States are encouraged to consider establishing food safety systems and
supervisory mechanisms to ensure the provision of safe food to consumers.

9.6 States should ensure that education on safe practices is available for
food business operators so that their activities neither lead to harmful
residues in food nor cause harm to the environment. States should also take
measures to educate consumers about the safe storage, handling and utilization
of food within the household. States should collect and disseminate information
to the public regarding food-borne diseases and food safety matters, and should
cooperate with regional and international organizations addressing food safety
issues.

9.7 States should adopt measures to protect consumers from deception and
misrepresentation in the packaging, labelling, advertising and sale of food and
facilitate consumers’ choice by ensuring appropriate information on marketed
food, and provide recourse for any harm caused by unsafe or adulterated food,
including food offered by street sellers. Such measures should not be used as
unjustified barriers to trade; they should be in conformity with the WTO
agreements (in particular SPS and TBT).

9.8 Developed countries are encouraged to provide technical
assistance to developing countries through advice, credits, donations and grants
for capacity building and training in food safety. When possible and
appropriate, developing countries with more advanced capabilities in food
safety-related areas are encouraged to lend assistance to less advanced
developing countries.

9.9 States are encouraged to cooperate with all stakeholders, including
regional and international consumer organizations, in addressing food safety
issues, and consider their participation in national and international fora
where policies with impact on food production, processing, distribution, storage
and marketing are discussed.

GUIDELINE 10:
NUTRITION

10.1 If necessary, States should take measures to maintain,
adapt or strengthen dietary diversity and healthy eating habits and food
preparation, as well as feeding patterns, including breastfeeding, while
ensuring that changes in availability and access to food supply do not
negatively affect dietary composition and intake.

10.2 States are encouraged to take steps, in particular through education,
information and labelling regulations, to prevent overconsumption and unbalanced
diets that may lead to malnutrition, obesity and degenerative diseases.

10.3 States are encouraged to involve all relevant stakeholders, in
particular communities and local government, in the design, implementation,
management, monitoring and evaluation of programmes to increase the production
and consumption of healthy and nutritious foods, especially those that are rich
in micronutrients. States may wish to promote gardens both at home and at school
as a key element in combating micronutrient deficiencies and promoting healthy
eating. States may also consider adopting regulations for fortifying foods to
prevent and cure micronutrient deficiencies, in particular of iodine, iron and
Vitamin A.

10.4 States should address the specific food and nutritional needs of people
living with HIV/AIDS or suffering from other epidemics.

10.5 States should take appropriate measures to promote and encourage
breastfeeding, in line with their cultures, the International Code of Marketing
of Breast-milk Substitutes and subsequent resolutions of the World Health
Assembly, in accordance with the WHO/UNICEF recommendations.

10.6 States may wish to disseminate information on the feeding of infants and
young children that is consistent and in line with current scientific knowledge
and internationally accepted practices and to take steps to counteract
misinformation on infant feeding. States should consider with utmost care issues
regarding breastfeeding and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection on the
basis of the most up-to-date, authoritative scientific advice and referring to
the latest WHO/UNICEF guidelines.

10.7 States are invited to take parallel action in the areas of health,
education and sanitary infrastructure and promote intersectoral collaboration,
so that necessary services and goods become available to people to enable them
to make full use of the dietary value in the food they eat and thus achieve
nutritional well-being.

10.8 States should adopt measures to eradicate any kind of discriminatory
practices, especially with respect to gender, in order to achieve adequate
levels of nutrition within the household.

10.9 States should recognize that food is a vital part of an individual’s
culture, and they are encouraged to take into account individuals’ practices,
customs and traditions on matters related to food.

10.10 States are reminded of the cultural values of dietary and eating habits
in different cultures and should establish methods for promoting food safety,
positive nutritional intake including fair distribution of food within
communities and households with special emphasis on the needs and rights of both
girls and boys, as well as pregnant women and lactating mothers, in all
cultures.

GUIDELINE 11:
EDUCATION AND AWARENESS RAISING

11.1 States should support investment in human resource development such as
health, education, literacy and other skills training, which are essential to
sustainable development, including agriculture, fisheries, forestry and rural
development.

11.2 States should strengthen and broaden primary education opportunities,
especially for girls, women and other under-served populations.

11.3 States should encourage agricultural and environmental education at the
primary and secondary levels in order to create a better awareness in new
generations about the importance of conserving and making sustainable use of
natural resources.

11.4 States should support higher education by strengthening developing
country university and technical faculties of agriculture related disciplines
and business to carry out both education and research functions, and by engaging
universities throughout the world in training developing country
agriculturalists, scientists and businessmen at the graduate and post-graduate
levels.

11.5 States should provide information to individuals to strengthen their
ability to participate in food related policy decisions that may affect them,
and to challenge decisions that threaten their rights.

11.6 States should implement measures to make people improve their housing
conditions and their means for food preparation, because they are related to
food safety. Such measures should be made in the educative and infrastructure
fields, especially in rural households.

11.7 States should promote and/or integrate, into school curricula, human
rights education, including civil, political, economic, social and cultural
rights, which includes the progressive realization of the right to adequate
food.

11.8 States are encouraged to promote awareness of the importance of human
rights, including the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

11.9 States should provide proper training to officials responsible for the
implementation of the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

11.10 States should raise public awareness of these guidelines and
continously provide and improve access to them and to relevant human rights laws
and regulations, particularly in rural and remote areas.

11.11 States may wish to empower civil society to participate in the
implementation of these guidelines, for instance through capacity building.

GUIDELINE 12:
NATIONAL FINANCIAL RESOURCES

12.1 Regional and local authorities are encouraged to allocate resources for
anti-hunger and food security purposes in their respective budgets.

12.2 States should ensure transparency and accountability in the use of
public resources, particularly in the area of food security.

12.3 States are encouraged to promote basic social programmes and
expenditures, in particular those affecting the poor and the vulnerable segments
of society, and protect them from budget reductions, while increasing the
quality and effectiveness of social expenditures. States should strive to ensure
that budget cuts do not negatively affect access to adequate food among the
poorest sections of society.

12.4 States are encouraged to establish an enabling legal and economic
environment to promote and mobilize domestic savings and attract external
resources for productive investment, and seek innovative sources of funding,
both public and private at national and international levels, for social
programmes.

12.5 States are invited to take appropriate steps and suggest strategies to
contribute to raise awareness of the families of migrants in order to promote
efficient use of the remittances of migrants for investments that could improve
their livelihoods, including the food security of their families.

GUIDELINE 13:
SUPPORT FOR VULNERABLE GROUPS

13.1 Consistent with the World Food Summit commitment, States should establish
Food Insecurity and Vulnerability Information and Mapping Systems (FIVIMS), in
order to identify groups and households particularly vulnerable to food
insecurity along with the reasons for their food insecurity. States should
develop and identify corrective measures to be implemented both immediately and
progressively to provide access to adequate food.

13.2 States are invited to systematically undertake disaggregated analysis on
the food insecurity, vulnerability and nutritional status of different groups in
society, with particular attention to assessing any form of discrimination that
may manifest itself in greater food insecurity and vulnerability to food
insecurity, or in a higher prevalence of malnutrition among specific population
groups, or both, with a view to removing and preventing such causes of food
insecurity or malnutrition.

13.3 States should establish transparent, non-discriminatory eligibility
criteria in order to ensure effective targeting of assistance, so that no one
who is in need is excluded, or that those not in need of assistance are
included. Effective accountability and administrative systems are essential to
prevent leakages and corruption. Factors to take into account include household
and individual assets and income, nutrition and health status, as well as
existing coping mechanisms.

13.4 States may wish to give priority to channelling food assistance via
women as a means of enhancing their decision-making role and ensuring that the
food is used to meet the household’s food requirements.

GUIDELINE 14:
SAFETY NETS

14.1 States should consider, to the extent that resources permit,
establishing and maintaining social safety and food safety nets to protect those
who are unable to provide for themselves. As far as possible, and with due
regard to effectiveness and coverage, States should consider building on
existing capacities within communities at risk to provide the necessary
resources for social safety and food safety nets to fulfil the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food. States may wish to consider the
benefits of procuring locally.

14.2 States and international organizations should consider the benefits of
local procurement for food assistance that could integrate the nutritional needs
of those affected by food insecurity and the commercial interests of local
producers.

14.3 Although the design of social and food safety nets will depend on the
nature of food insecurity, objectives, budget, existing administrative capacity
and local circumstances such as levels of food supply and local food markets,
States should nonetheless ensure that they adequately target those in need and
respect the principle of non-discrimination in the establishment of eligibility
criteria.

14.4 States should take steps, to the extent that resources permit, so that
any measure of an economic or financial nature, likely to have a negative impact
on existing levels of food consumption of vulnerable groups be accompanied by
provision for effective food safety nets. Safety nets should be linked to other
complementary interventions that promote food security in the longer term.

14.5 In situations where it has been determined that food plays an
appropriate role in safety nets, food assistance should bridge the gap between
the nutritional needs of the affected population and their ability to meet those
needs themselves. Food assistance should be provided with the fullest possible
participation of those affected, and such food should be nutritionally adequate
and safe, bearing in mind local circumstances, dietary traditions and cultures.

14.7 States, in the design of safety nets, should consider the important role
of international organizations such as FAO, IFAD and WFP, and other relevant
international, regional and civil society organizations that can assist them in
fighting rural poverty and promoting food security and agricultural development.

GUIDELINE 15:
INTERNATIONAL FOOD AID

15.1 Donor States should ensure that their food aid policies support national
efforts by recipient States to achieve food security, and base their food aid
provisions on sound needs assessment, targeting especially food insecure and
vulnerable groups. In this context, donor States should provide assistance in a
manner that takes into account food safety, the importance of not disrupting
local food production and the nutritional and dietary needs and culture of
recipient populations. Food aid should be provided with a clear exit strategy
and avoid the creation of dependency. Donors should promote increased use of
local and regional commercial markets to meet food needs in famine-prone
countries and reduce dependence on food aid.

15.2 International food-aid transactions, including bilateral food aid that
is monetized, should be carried out in a manner consistent with the FAO
Principles of Surplus Disposal and Consultative Obligations, the Food Aid
Convention and the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, and should meet the
internationally agreed food safety standards, bearing in mind local
circumstances, dietary traditions and cultures.

15.3 States and relevant non-state actors should ensure, in accordance with
international law, safe and unimpeded access to the populations in need, as well
as for international needs assessments, and by humanitarian agencies involved in
the distribution of international food assistance.

15.4 The provision of international food aid in emergency situations should
take particular account of longer term rehabilitation and development objectives
in the recipient countries, and should respect universally recognized
humanitarian principles.

15.5 The assessment of needs and the planning, monitoring and evaluation of
the provision of food aid should, as far as possible, be made in a participatory
manner, and whenever possible, in close collaboration with recipient governments
at the national and local level.

GUIDELINE 16: NATURAL AND
HUMAN-MADE DISASTERS

16.1 Food should never be used as a means of political and economic pressure.

16.2 States reaffirm the obligations they have assumed under international
humanitarian law and, in particular, as parties to the 1949 Geneva Conventions
and/or the 1977 Additional Protocols thereto with respect to the humanitarian
needs of the civilian population, including their access to food in situations
of armed conflict and occupation, inter alia,

Additional Protocol I provides, inter alia, that “[t]he starvation of
civilians as a method of warfare is prohibited” and that “[i]t is prohibited to
attack, destroy, remove or render useless objects indispensable to the survival
of the civilian population, such as foodstuffs, agricultural areas for the
production of foodstuffs, crops, livestock, drinking water installations and
supplies and irrigation works, for the specific purpose of denying them, for
their sustenance value to the civilian population or to the adverse party,
whatever the motive, whether in order to starve out civilians, to cause them to
move away, or for any other motive”, and that “these objects shall not be made
the object of reprisals”.

16.3 In situations of occupation, international humanitarian law provides,
inter alia: that to the fullest extent of the means available to it, the
Occupying Power has the duty of ensuring the food and medical supplies of the
population; that it should, in particular, bring in the necessary foodstuffs,
medical stores and other articles if the resources of the Occupied Territory are
inadequate; and that if the whole or part of the population of an Occupied
Territory is inadequately supplied, the Occupying Power shall agree to relief
schemes on behalf of the said population, and shall facilitate them by all the
means at its disposal.2

16.4 States reaffirm the obligations they have assumed regarding the
protection, safety and security of humanitarian personnel.

16.5 States should make every effort to ensure that refugees and internally
displaced persons have access at all times to adequate food. In this respect,
States and other relevant stakeholders should be encouraged to make use of the
Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement when dealing with situations of
internal displacement.

16.6 In the case of natural or human-made disasters, States should provide
food assistance to those in need, may request international assistance if their
own resources do not suffice, and should facilitate safe and unimpeded access
for international assistance in accordance with international law and
universally recognized humanitarian principles, bearing in mind local
circumstances, dietary traditions and cultures.

16.7 States should put in place adequate and functioning mechanisms of early
warning to prevent or mitigate the effects of natural or human-made disasters.
Early warning systems should be based on international standards and
cooperation, on reliable, disaggregated data and should be constantly monitored.
States should take appropriate emergency preparedness measures, such as keeping
food stocks for the acquisition of food and take steps to put in place adequate
systems for distribution.

16.8 States are invited to consider establishing mechanisms to assess
nutritional impact and to gain understanding of the coping strategies of
affected households in the event of natural or human made disasters. This should
inform the targeting, design, implementation and evaluation of relief,
rehabilitation and resilience building programmes.

GUIDELINE 17:
MONITORING, INDICATORS AND BENCHMARKS

17.1 States may wish to establish mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the
implementation of these Guidelines towards the progressive realization of the
right to adequate food in the context of national food security, in accordance
with their capacity and by building on existing information systems and
addressing information gaps.

17.2 States may wish to consider conducting “Right to Food Impact
Assessments” in order to identify the impact of domestic policies, programmes
and projects on the progressive realization of the right to adequate food of the
population at large and vulnerable groups in particular, and as a basis for the
adoption of the necessary corrective measures.

17.3 States may also wish to develop a set of process, impact and outcome
indicators, relying on indicators already in use and monitoring systems such as
FIVIMS, so as to assess the implementation of the progressive realization of the
right to adequate food. They may wish to establish appropriate benchmarks to be
achieved in the short, medium and long term, which relate directly to meeting
poverty and hunger reduction targets as a minimum, as well as other national and
international goals including those adopted at the World Food Summit and the
Millennium Summit.

17.4 In this evaluation process, process indicators could be so identified or
designed that they explicitly relate and reflect the use of specific policy
instruments and interventions with outcomes consistent with the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food
security. Such indicators could enable States to implement legal, policy and
administrative measures, detect discriminatory practices and outcomes, and
ascertain the extent of political and social participation in the process of
realizing that right.

17.5 States should, in particular, monitor the food-security situation of
vulnerable groups, especially women, children and the elderly, and their
nutritional status, including the prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies.

17.6 In this evaluation process, States should ensure a participatory
approach to information gathering, management, analysis, interpretation and
dissemination.

GUIDELINE 18:
NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS

18.1 States that have as a matter of national law or policy adopted a
rights-based approach, and national human rights institutions or ombudspersons,
may wish to include the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in
the context of national food security in their mandates. States that do not have
national human rights institutions or ombudspersons are encouraged to establish
them. Human rights institutions should be independent and autonomous from the
government, in accordance with the Paris Principles. States should encourage
civil society organizations and individuals to contribute to monitoring
activities undertaken by national human rights institutions with respect to the
progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

18.2 States are invited to encourage efforts by national institutions to
establish partnerships and increase cooperation with civil society.

GUIDELINE 19: INTERNATIONAL
DIMENSION

19.1 States should fulfil those measures, actions and commitments on the
international dimension, as described in Section III below, in support of the
implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines, which assist States in their
national efforts in the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in
the context of national food security as set forth by the World Food Summit and
the World Food Summit: five years later within the context of the
Millennium Declaration

Section III: International
Measures, Actions and Commitments

INTERNATIONAL
COOPERATION AND UNILATERAL MEASURES

1. In the context of recent major international conferences, the international
community has stated its deep concern over the persistence of hunger, its
readiness to support national governments in their efforts to combat hunger and
malnutrition and its commitment to cooperate actively within the global
partnership for development , which includes the international alliance against
hunger.

2. States have the primary responsibility for their own economic and social
development, including the progressive realization of the right to adequate food
in the context of national food security. Stressing that national development
efforts should be supported by an enabling international environment, the
international community and the UN system, including FAO, as well as other
relevant agencies and bodies according to their mandates, are urged to take
actions in supporting national development efforts for the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food
security. This essential role of international cooperation is recognized,
inter alia, in article 56 of the Charter of the United Nations as well as in
the outcomes of major international conferences such as the plan of action of
the World Summit on Sustainable Development. Food should not be used as a tool
of economic and political pressure.

3. States are strongly urged to take steps with a view to the avoidance of,
and refrain from, any unilateral measure not in accordance with international
law and the charter of the United Nations that impedes the full achievement of
economic and social development by the population of the affected countries and
that hinders their progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

ROLE OF THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

4. Consistent with commitments made at various international conferences, in
particular the Monterrey Consensus, developed countries should assist developing
countries in attaining international development goals, including those
contained in the Millennium Declaration. States and relevant international
organizations according to their respective mandates should actively support the
progressive realization of the right to adequate food at the national level.
External support, including South-South cooperation, should be coordinated with
national policies and priorities.

TECHNICAL
COOPERATION

5. Developed and developing countries should act in partnership to support their
efforts to achieve the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in
the context of national food security through technical cooperation, including
institutional capacity building, and transfer of technology on mutually agreed
terms, as committed in the major international conferences, in all areas covered
in these guidelines, with special focus on impediments to food security such as
HIV/AIDS.

INTERNATIONAL
TRADE

6. International trade can play a major role in the promotion of economic
development, and the alleviation of poverty and improving food security at the
national level.

7. States should promote international trade as one of the effective
instruments for development, as expanded international trade could open
opportunities to reduce hunger and poverty in many of the developing countries.

8. It is recalled that the long-term objective referred to in the WTO
Agreement on Agriculture is to establish a fair and market-oriented trading
system through a programme of fundamental reform encompassing strengthened rules
and specific commitments on support and protection in order to correct and
prevent restrictions and distortions in world agricultural markets.

9. States are urged to implement commitments expressed at various relevant
international conferences and the recommendations of the Sao Paulo Consensus
(The Eleventh Session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development)
including, for example, those reproduced below:

75. Agriculture is a central element in the current negotiations. Efforts
should be intensified to achieve the internationally agreed aims embodied in the
three pillars of the Doha mandate, namely substantial improvements in market
access; reductions of, with a view to phasing out, all forms of export
subsidies; and substantial reductions in trade-distorting domestic support. The
negotiations on agriculture taking place in the WTO should deliver an outcome
that is consistent with the ambition set out in the Doha mandate. Special and
differential treatment for developing countries shall be an integral part of all
elements of the negotiations and shall take fully into account development needs
in a manner consistent with the Doha mandate, including food security and rural
development. Non-trade concerns of countries will be taken into account, as
provided for in the Agreement on Agriculture, in accordance with paragraph 13 of
the Doha Ministerial Declaration.

…

77. Efforts at extending market access liberalization for non-agricultural
products under the Doha Work Programme should be intensified with the aim of
reducing or, as appropriate, eliminating tariffs, including tariff peaks, high
tariffs and tariff escalation, as well as non-tariff barriers, in particular on
products of export interest to developing countries. Negotiations should take
fully into account the special needs and interests of developing countries and
LDCs, including through less than full reciprocity in reduction commitments.

10. Such measures can contribute to strengthening an enabling environment for
the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in the context of
national food security.

EXTERNAL DEBT

11. States and relevant international organizations should, as appropriate,
pursue external debt relief measures vigorously and expeditiously in order to
release resources for combating hunger, alleviating rural and urban poverty and
promoting sustainable development. Creditors and debtors must share the
responsibility for preventing and resolving unsustainable debt situations.
Speedy, effective and full implementation of the enhanced heavily indebted poor
countries (HIPC) initiative, which should be fully financed by additional
resources, is critical. Furthermore, all official and commercial creditors are
urged to participate in this initiative.Heavily indebted poor countries should
take or continue to take policy measures required to ensure the full
implementation of the HIPC initiative.

OFFICIAL
DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

12. Consistent with the Monterrey Consensus, developed countries should assist
developing countries in attaining international development goals, including
those contained in the Millennium Declaration, by providing adequate technical
and financial assistance and by making concrete efforts towards the targets for
ODA of 0.7 per cent of GNP to developing countries and 0.15 per cent to 0.2 per
cent of GNP to least developed countries. This should be linked to efforts to
improve the quality and effectiveness of aid, including through better
coordination, closer integration with national development strategies, greater
predictability and stability and genuine national ownership. Donors should be
encouraged to take steps to ensure that resources provided for debt relief do
not detract from ODA resources intended to be available for developing
countries. Developing countries are encouraged to build on progress achieved in
ensuring that ODA is used effectively to help achieve development goals and
targets. In addition, voluntary financial mechanisms supportive of efforts to
achieve sustained growth, development and poverty eradication should be
explored.

INTERNATIONAL
FOOD AID

13. States that provide international assistance in the form of food aid should
regularly examine their relevant policies and, if necessary, review them to
support national efforts by recipient States to progressively realize the right
to adequate food in the context of national food security. In the broader
context of food security policy, States should base their food aid policies on
sound needs assessment that involve both recipient and donors and that target
especially needy and vulnerable groups. In this context, States should provide
such assistance in a manner that takes into account the importance of food
safety, local and regional food production capacity and benefits, and the
nutritional needs, as well as culture of recipient populations.

PARTNERSHIPS
WITH NGOS/CSOS/PRIVATE SECTOR

14. States, international organizations, civil society, the private sector, all
relevant non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders, should promote
the strengthening of partnerships and coordinated action, including programmes
and capacity development efforts, with a view to strengthening the progressive
realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food
security.

PROMOTION AND
PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT TO ADEQUATE FOOD

15. The organs and specialized agencies related to human rights should continue
to enhance the coordination of their activities based on the consistent and
objective application of international human right instruments, including the
promotion of the progressive realization of the right to adequate food. The
promotion and protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms must be
considered a priority objective of the United Nations in accordance with its
purposes and principles, in particular the purpose of international cooperation.
In the framework of these purposes and principles, the promotion and protection
of all human rights, including the progressive realization of the right to
adequate food, is a legitimate concern of all Member States, the international
community and civil society.

INTERNATIONAL
REPORTING

16. States may report on a voluntary basis on relevant activities and progress
achieved in implementing the Voluntary Guidelines on the progressive realization
of the right to adequate food in the context of national food security, to the
FAO Committee on World Food Security (CFS) within its reporting procedures.

______________________

1
References in the Voluntary Guidelines to the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and other international treaties do not
prejudice the position of any State with respect to signature, ratification or
accession to those instruments

21949
Geneva Convention IV Relative to the Protection of Civilians Persons in Time of
War, Articles 55, 59.

ANNEX 2

Inter-Governmental Working Group on the Elaboration of Voluntary
Guidelines to Support Member States’ Efforts to Achieve the Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security

Statement by the United StatesSeptember 23, 2004

The United States is pleased to join consensus in the adoption of the
Voluntary Guidelines to Support Member States’ Efforts to Achieve the
Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National
Food Security.

Throughout the negotiations, delegates from all regions and representatives
of civil society made valuable contributions to the text before us, and worked
in a spirit of cooperation and good will.

At the conclusion of the negotiations for the World Food Summit and for the
World Food Summit: five years later, the United States formally expressed
its views on the nature of what is described in these guidelines as the
“progressive realization of the right to adequate food.” These statements
continue to express the views of the United States. In joining in the adoption
of these Voluntary Guidelines, the United States does not recognize any change
in the current state of conventional or customary international law regarding
rights related to food. The United States believes that the attainment of any
“right to adequate food” or “fundamental freedom to be free from hunger” is a
goal or aspiration to be realized progressively that does not give rise to any
international obligations nor diminish the responsibilities of national
governments toward their citizens.

The United States would like to express its deep appreciation for the strong
leadership, vision and grace under pressure we have been privileged to witness
from the Chairman of these negotiations, Ambassador Mohammad Saeid Noori-Naeeni.
His leadership is the single most important reason for the success of these
negotiations. We would also like to express our deep thanks to the talented
members of the FAO Secretariat, led by Hartwig de Haen and Julian Thomas, and
all other professionals for their unflagging support.

We would be grateful if the text of this statement in its entirety could be
included in the record of this meeting.